


Seperated: The beginning or fall?

by ninji12



Category: Left 4 Dead (Video Games)
Genre: Developing Relationship, Ellis/Nick - Freeform, L4D2, Love, M/M, Nick/Ellis - Freeform, Survival, relationship, relationships
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-23
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-09-25 06:55:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17116559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ninji12/pseuds/ninji12
Summary: Nick and Ellis are permanently seperated from Coach and Rochelle. Ellis is devastated by the loss of their two partners and its up to Nick to make sure Ellis survives.





	1. Seperation

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, this is my first attempt(maybe only depending how this goes) and was inspired to try to write my own fanfic after continuously reading Blind Man's Bluff by ladyredms
> 
> You can find this masterpiece story(which is still being continuously updated) here and I suggest anyone who reads these notes to give this story a shot because Ladyredms is an excellent and talented writer  
> Url: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11546595/chapters/25928070

He didn't know what to do, he became so reliant in Coach to lead them, and Rochelle to take care of the annoying hick that he didnt know how to calm the southerner down. The hick locked himself in the bedroom in the safehouse, his cry echoes through the safe room, threatening to escape and attract a horde, or worse, the tanks that ended Coach and Rochelle's lives, or so he believes that they are dead. The last thing he saw was a a 4 door truck slam into the building they jumped into, and then 2 other tanks appeared full of rage and anger. If it wasnt for the hick , Nick would of stood there in a daze, but now that they are in a secured saferoom, the hick broke down and ran into the room, and as much as Nick hated it, his heart broke just a little to see the optimistic hick broken, and he secretly missed the hick's blind enthusiasm, his smile and laughter, however he will never admit that. His pride forbids him 

 

**2 hours later**

"Dear lord, please let 'chelle and Coach be ok, they were like muh family and I miss them dearly and lord please don't take Nick mmkay? I cant do this by muh self, being alone scares muh bones. Sorry for buggin' ya lord, I'll leave you alone for now." Ellis said in a weak whisper, trying to not break down again  he felt bad for ignoring Nick's request to open the door and he felt terrible for blaming the northern. He knew it wasnt his fault, but he stood there and watched the tank throw the truck at Coach and Rochelle while Nick blanked out. He never seen the over-confident northern freeze before, and become paler than he already was. Nick was in shock do it couldn't be his fault, so why does his conciousness keep telling him it was all Nick's fault while afraid he Northern will leave him? He didnt understand these feelings, he was always depended on himself, he was used to it after Keith was in a coma and never woke up.  His thoughts were focusing on Keith, and how he regretted never truly admitting his feelings for his buddy Keith, and how he regretted for screaming at Keith's mom, who decided to pull life support, but now, he was glad his best buddy was dead, and didnt see the horrors of the Green Flu. 

**Knock knock knock**

"Overalls you have to come out of the room soon, you need to eat and drink. I know you are upset and angry, but you gotta take care of yourself." Nick yelled slightly annoyed and tired. He stood there for ten minutes before giving up, placing the tray of food and water on the floor for the hick, informs Ellis where he put the food and walks back to the front. The sky is starting to go dark, and the zombies seem to quiet down. The floor is still, no indication a tank is nearby, but he'll stay up on watch. He knows he'll regret staying up all night with no rest, but they have enough supplies to stay here for another day, so he figured he can take a nap tomorrow morning before having to go on a supply run. 

**...**

"Ni-nick wake up! I heard them, we gotta go get 'em!" Ellis screamed at the sleeping figure. When the Northern didnt budge, he started panicking and starts to violently shake Nick, trying to wake him up. "Nick please, I heard them." the hick begged, near breaking down in tears. "Ugh.. fuck off overalls..." the Northern said, groggy and tired  he felt exhausted and sore, but that doesnt stop the realization he fell asleep during watch and registering what Ellis said. "What do you mean you heard them? You better be 100% sure or I'll kick your southern ass for making us go out during the night when the zombies have better vision than us," Nick said angrily, eyes glaring holes in the Hick for waking him up. Nick has never been a morning person, and Ellis was use to Nick being grouchy right after being woken up, and he didnt take offense, he was just glad the Northern woke up, because he heard Rochelle's voice. He was sure it was Rochelle's voice. He couldn't imagine being wrong about it.

...

Nick grabs the pipe, and looks over his shoulder to confirm the hick was ready. He made the hick promise to stay behind him and allow Nick to lead. He keeps telling himself it's because he wants to keep the hick out of his way, but deep down, he felt overly protective of Ellis since the separation. He doesnt want to think of that, so he repeats the same line over and over, failing to ever believe the words he is telling himself. He pushes himself to walk in a crouched position, to keep him unseen, but it doesn't matter considering Ellis bumps into Nick, causing the Northern to fall and knock over a metal trashcan. It was almost comedic if it wasnt for the fact the noise could of alerted a horde to their location. His heart is beating fast, and he grabs Ellis and pulls him closer to hide behind the car. Only when he regains his courage does he take a peak, and lady luck was on his side tonight. Only four zombies wandered to their directions, the zombies keep sniffing the air, like its tracking its prey before Nick takes their heads off with his silenced 9mm handgun. "Watch your fucking steps, kid. You could of summoned a huge horde on us." the Northern hissed in a whisper. Before Ellis could reply, Nick forces them to run ti the fence across the street and starts their search for their lost teammates...


	2. Desperation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sec chapter made, shorter than I expected but I could only push it for so far before my ability to spread it out. Not the best writers, so I apologize if you find it too short.

"Where did you hear them Ellis?" Nick asked while glancing their surroundings, only spotting a handful of idled common infected. No special infected appeared yet, which is always odd, the special infected have become increasingly more frequent for the past few weeks while the common infected, well still plenty, seemed to be thinning out, or hiding due to the cold. The infected have no self preservation instincts, they refuse to sleep, eat, drink or keep their body temperature at a safe levels, so the theory of them hiding was very unlikely, but Nick hopes that the infected hibernate instead of the specials becoming the normal. Imagine horde solely of the specials, we wouldn't have a chance against them. "I heard Rochelle a few streets away, that way..." the hick said, pointing straight forward. Nick wanted to yell and tell the hick that he was hearing their voices due to the grief he was feeling and telling him how stupid the hick was doing dragging them out of their safe-house. He instead only replied with a annoyed grunt and starts heading towards that direction while keeping an eye out for the infected. The hick didn't respond or try to make small talk, he knew better. He didn't want to anger Nick anymore than he already had but he was confident that he heard Rochelle scream earlier. There was no mistaking it. He recognized that voice and ye had to figure out if Rochelle and Coach are alive or dead. He just had to.

 

**...**

 

"I only see infected Ellis, we cant keep clearing out buildings, we don't have unlimited ammo and our melee weapons will only last for so long before they eventually snap. I haven't heard anything alive for a while. Just the screech of the infected," the northern said, trying to keep his annoyance out of his voice. His pessimism kept him alive before and after the infection and his gut was telling him something had is coming. "Nick we don't just give up on our friends! They are like family, how do you not have any faith they are alive?" Ellis nearly screamed, anxiety and and desperation freely flowing from his tone, his eyes started to puff up red and cheeks turning red due to frustration. "El, Ellis we have to be practical about this. If they survived, they would of found us by now. They knew where we were heading and even if they couldn't make it, we would of found signs of them by now. They wouldn't leave us, and they aren't here. Time to face the fact that we are alone and potentially putting ourselves in danger. We can either die trying to find them, or go back to the safe-house and prepare to continue on through the plan we all agreed to before the incident. What is it Ellis?" Nick said, almost couldn't hear any emotions in the way Nick spoke, however his eyes gave it away, that Nick was scared and wanted  to go back to the safe-house, where he knew they would be safe. "Nick i... I cant leave em, they are like family to much and I'm not strong enough to leave em behind." Ellis was near tears, he keeps seeing the worst outcome, and he cant get the image of them dead out of his mind. "OK Ellis, we'll search for one more hour, after that we are going back." was all Nick said before walking ahead to start clearing out more houses and buildings near them, with a desperate Ellis and a pessimistic Nick, what could go wrong?

The door they finally entered, the last house they will check for the day was broken down, one hinge holding it open, and they weren't going to check the house at first, however they noticed something. A bookshelf was laying on the ground, and a strip of purple cloth, same shade of purple to Coach's shirt. Nobody said anything, only the shallow breath from Ellis could be heard, and Nick's heart beating in his ears. Minutes felt like hours and it felt like gravity was getting stronger, Ellis knees trembled and a sob stuck in his throat, and his eyes starting to puff open. His spark in his eyes escaped, and total defeat took over. "El, thei-" nick tried to stay before Ellos interrupted. "No! They are dead, you were right, congratulations you yank!" Ellis screamed before taking off, faster than Nick could keep up, and an instant, Nick was all alone, completely worried about his only teammate left...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have any constructive criticism, please comment below and if you liked it, please let me know. Appreciate any encouragement


	3. I walked across an empty land

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick searches for Ellis after Ellis ran off

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I changed a bit how i went through this chapter, so if it feels different, thats why. Another relatively dialogueless chapter but next one i plan to have a full on a full conversation

_ “I walked across an empty land” _

 

His ears pulsating, lungs are on fire. Both  hand shaking and his eyes puffed up, the sight of blood in the beige carpet burned into his eyes, the feeling of being helpless in this world is overwhelming all of his 5 senses. He tasted bile, heard his dreaded heart pounding, felt his skin become sensitive and hives of bumps crawled all over his body. He saw the field of a baseball field, vegetation yellow, dirt everywhere and the lines of the field were missing, only the bases indicating the once baseball field can be seen, bleachers in disrepair and the sun setting in the west, clouds blocking rays and signs of potential rain. The sight truly was depressing, as depressing as Ellis’s inner being is. He never felt this empty before, and now he was alone. Even the northern wasn’t around, and he didn’t know how to handle the silence. 

 

…

 

_ “ _ _ Oh simple thing, where have you gone? _

_ I'm getting tired and I need someone to rely on” _

 

Nick was surprised when Ellis took off, and he was left alone, he was finally alone after weeks of constant contact with the annoying brat, and now that he was alone, he couldn’t breathe, his chest was about to explode, he couldn’t breathe and his vision was going blurry. The wetness on his face felt off. “Damn, must be raining,” He said before forcing himself to take off and chase after the hick. As he ran past the desolate cookie cutter houses in suburbia of this city, the “rain” got more distracting and streaks of wetness swarmed his eyes and cheeks. His lungs wanting to give up, partially for being a smoker, and partially for being afraid, and the sprint he took on was straining his body. The world was becoming blurry, the wind picks up and the world becomes silent. He wasn’t ready to lose the hick. He will find him, even if it kills him. 

 

The scenery was gloomy, clouds in the distance and he knew he would have to hurry, it didn’t help that it was getting darker every minute but with rain, dark is a total nightmare. Nick took a glance of his surroundings, looking for any signs of where the southern went. His immediate surrounds had a was relatively peaceful, this neighborhood looks relatively untouched by looters and the infection. The houses are clear signs that the middle class lived in this neighborhood, two to three story homes filled the area, a large park two blocks away that nature hasnt started to take back. Almost like the grass was just recently mowed, gardens flowered. Rarely any cars around, and the ones there were parked in driveways or parked on the side. Nick almost felt like this area was never touched, but it must of been, the occupants were gone, the house he just exited had dead infected and blood. He wondered how many homes have dead bodies inside, or infected staring at the walls awaiting for a sign of survivors. Nick shakes his head at the thought, tightens his grip on his handgun, and it only takes him a second before realizing where to start looking. The park nearby was a good start. 

…

The park was green, just like how he saw it a block away. However now he could tell the grass was freshly mowed. There is no signs of weeds growing back, and it looked too good to be unattended for this long. Hell, when he was taking care of his lawn when he was still married, weeds sprung up a week after and he used every weed killers he could find. He skims the area, a tree near a pound is proudly swaying due to the wind, sprinkle of rain water going straight down. “Well, at least the wind isn't so bad that the sprinkle of rain doesn't go sideways.” he thought. The sidewalk cutting through the grass, and the road empty. No bodies to be found, and that worried him. Either someone is cleaning this area, or they all became infected and are waiting for the right moment to pounce. He started to become more observant of his surrounding and he was starting to become paranoid, sweating while he steps through the green grass, looking for signs of the hick, and to not attract any unwanted attention from the infected and uninfected. 

 

“ _ I came across a fallen tree _ _  
_ _ I felt the branches of it looking at me _ ”

 

He continued on, still eyeing the park, he wasn't seeing any signs of the hick but he kept on going. He decided he would check the area until he saw movement in the corner of his left eye. His hands start shaking and he forces himself to check, raising his 9mm handgun, he aims and prepares to fire if necessary. A dark figure is seen, standing across the park. Nick cant make any details but the figure looks agitated. The black outline of the body indicated he was wearing a hoodie, and the way the chest moved indicated the figure was breathing hard. The head keeps looking at his general direction, and Nick was terrified. “Shit shit shit… this can't be good.” He whispered to himself. He started to slowly walk back when the figure jerked really hard and ran in the opposite direction of Nick. 

 

Nick almost decided to not go that way until he heard a familiar voice scream… and Nick's heart throbbed in his throat, and took off. “No no no no” was the only thing he he could hear and his senses are starting to dull, and he wasnt prepared to see what was just around the hill. There lies a dead hunter… and a barely breathing Ellis. Ellis's shirt was torn, and blood was coming out of his chest. A first aid pack next to the right hand of the hick. It was apparent Ellis was trying to stop the bleeding before he loss consciousness and Nick's nightmare was coming true.. his fear of being alone. 

 

He rushes to the southerner and starts to RIP the first aid kit open drastically, but his hands are too shaky. His surroundings look depressing. The opposite of the park. The area was clearly not maintained as well, as the baseball field was in ruins. “Ellis, dont die on me, got it? I need you to live, please dont die!” Nick said in a frantic scream. Finally getting the first aid kit open, he uses the hydrogen peroxide to clean off the wound, and tries to calm himself while he starts to stitch up the cut on his chest. The cut was deep, and string of skins barely hanging on, muscle showing through the open wound. Nick was not a doctor, but he learned how to stitch while on the streets at the age of 19, however he never felt with an injury like this. He dount the southern would survive this. Too much blood, there was a highly good chance a hidden blood vessel was torn, but he couldn't tell. Not until he cleared the blood, and it may be too late. 

 

“Howdy, you need any assistance?” A female voice was heard, causing Nick to jump from the sound and frantically look for his gun...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you are curious of the quotes, they are lyrics from Lily Allen | Somewhere Only We Know (Official Audio - John Lewis Christmas Advert), a link to the song on youtube will be posted below. 
> 
> I want to give you guys a heads up, the person that randomly shows up at the end is not in the L4D universe, and i havent decided if she'll become a permanent member or not as when i first started this I envisioned the story only with Nick and Ellis. I also don't plan to expand on what happened to Rochelle and Coach as I am thinking it'll be best to leave open in the air in case I decide i want to do a spin-off where its only Coach and Rochelle or not, but originally had planned to have them confirmed as dead instead of just signs of them being dead that I included in the previous chapters but I just wanted to let you guys know that Rochelle and Coach are not confirmed dead, implied as dead in case I wanted to do a different story later on.
> 
> This chapter took me a bit longer to write mostly due to having multiple ideas and had a hard time of what route i wanted to take. I originally was going to have Nick give up looking and he was the one to get hurt and found by Ellis but then I decided I wanted to focus on Nick on this one as his personality may differ from in-game and I plan to keep Ellis relatively close as possible to the in-game personality Ellis has. 
> 
> Thanks for reading and hoped you enjoyed, heres the link to that song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ve9cBwI-pAg


	4. Is she an angel, or is she a devil?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick, the doc and Ellis find a house to stay in for Ellis to recover

“Whoa suits, lower the gun, I'm not infected. I am a survivor just like you,” the woman said, hands calmly in the air, her gun kept held in her right hand. Nick struggled to hold back his emotions, and the woman could see it. “I can help, just lower your weapon. I use to be a surgeon before the outbreak. Dr. Claire Anderson, cardio attending at the Atlanta HealthVision hospital. What is your name?,” she said staring at the older gentleman 

 

…

 

“Names Nick, and that's all you need to know… how can I trust you? You could easily kill him..” Nick said, paranoia seething through his voice. He still kept the gun aimed between her eyes, he couldn't get a vibe off of her and it made him on edge. He was usually good at reading people but now, he can't read this stranger so the risk was almost not worth it. She seemed to be around 5'4, around 140 pounds, her chestnut brown hair put up into a ponytail, blood splatter on her white t-shirt and her denim pants had holes and looked worn down. Her backpack was laying beside her and her gun was laying in front of her feet. Looked like a magnum but his vision was slightly off and he was too focused on her face. Trying to find any indication of who she truly was. 

 

“There is no guarantee that you can trust me, but I can guarantee if I dont start patching up your friend he will die. What is it going to be Mr. Suits, let me operate and save his life or kill me and he dies,” she said with a smirk on her face. “I guess I'll trust you for now, but one wrong move, or if he dies, your dead.” Nick hissed lowering his gun to look back at the southern boy. “You'll make it bud, I believe in you.”

 

…

 

They decided the open field of the baseball field was dangerous, and as much as it is a risk to move the boy, Anderson knew she couldnt operate on him in this location. Too open and too risky. Infections in a post apocalyptic world is a death sentence and she only had limited anti-bacterial medicine, which isnt strong enough for the operation but she decided to help them. She couldnt figure out the man in the white suit, and why he was so protective of the young one. Obviously not related, their appearance assured her of that, so she will go with comradeship loyalty for now. She could feel the Man eye her, and if stares could kill, she would be dead. He didnt trust her and she was fine with that, but her oath to save lives overwhelm her desire to run. The neighborhood they entered was dirty, trash all around the ground, houses falling apart. Complete opposite of the neighborhood she came from. She went through a rather clean and quiet neighborhood, only slight signs of the infection, this one though put her on high alert. Carrying the boy is hard enough and they didn't have the option to run. With the older man behind them, carrying the board they used to keep the boy relatively stable and her carrying the front, one wrong move and the straps she added would snap and he would be injured even more. The bandages looked bloody and would need to be replaced soon but she had to make sure no blood vessels were cut. If they were, God help her. She didn't have the proper equipment to run bypass, but her fear one was only grew as the blood seems to keep seeping out. If anymore was lost, she would have to do a blood transfusion and she was glad she was apart of the 6.6% of the population that has o-negative blood, plus she didn't know the boys so it works out. “There, that seems like the most stable house and seems the electricity is still running. Porch light is on,” she said, slightly breathing harder. The man didn't reply to her, only grunted and kept following her trail. When they got to the porch, the concrete was slightly chipped and signs of weeds breaking through. She couldn't hear signs of something or someone living in the house but she wasn't entirely sure. The man took her gun so she was completely undefensive and her worry must of shown on her face. 

“Let's go in, find a place to put the hick and I'll clear out and you'll work on fixing the hick, got it?” he asked, hatred and mistrust breathed through his tone and shivers going down her back. One wrong move and she could die, so she only nodded her head and grabbed the handle. Locked. It was fucking locked. “Damnit, its locked!” She said in a raised voice, annoyance and fear hitting into her tone. “If there is something living in there, it'll know our location as soon as we enter, but we can't go any farther, your friend doesn't have the time to find the next place with running electricity.” She said on dismay.

 

…

 

Of course, life always puts a challenge and he knew she was right. He handed her gun back before saying “I'll check the backyard, maybe we can get in there that way. You guard him and keep him alive.” He started to walk after saying that, grabbing to the gate before leaving the girls sight. She was surprised that he left her alone, but she wasn't going to complain. There was only five infected wandering the street. Slowly making their way towards nothing. Gaze glasses over. She only prayed they didnt notice her. She checked the bandage and the blood on the boys chest was drying, which was a good sign. He was no longer bleeding and whatever was causing the internal bleeding stopped, which means it should be a simple stitch job. He was turning pale but she felt confident he would live. His breathing was stable and he isnt showing signs of going downhill anytime soon. 

 

…

 

Damn, the backyard is a mess. Damn toys littered the yard and there is a body in the pool, floating and not moving. Its face is submerged and he is wearing a black business suit and black pants and one shoe is missing. Laying near the ground was a gun, which indicated the man committed suicide. No signs of infected though, so that was going for him. The backyard patio is relatively clean, a rounded white table with an Umbrella in the middle, four chairs and rotten food sits on the table. The door was wide open and the lights inside shown the kitchen and dining room. The island was perfect spot to lay Ellis on and he made a mental note to inform the doctor. The inside was cleaner than he expected. The walls in the kitchen were a white and blue, white covering the top half and blue covering the bottom half of the wall. The light came with a ceiling fan and the fridge was humming in the background. The A/C was clearly on, and Nick shivered from the temperature. A pantry room sits between the stove and kitchen, which sits on the left side of the room and then an entrance to the living room to the right. And in direct front of him was a door to what appeared as an office room. A bookshelf covering an entire wall, filled with books and a computer was found sitting between two bookshelf, and a window right behind the computer. The living room was a beige colored room, a 32 inch television and a beige sofa. Barely decorated and he wondered why the man didnt decorate the room, or fill it with furniture. It was too empty for an average living room. Stairs sat to the end of the living room, almost unnoticeable due to the door hiding the stairs, and then the front door. The locks all turned, which was easily unlocked and luckily there was no alarm system. 

 

…

 

The doorknob starts to shake and she becomes nervous. That could either be Nick or the owner of this house. She grabs a pipe laying nearby and prepares to take charge when the door slowly opens and a hand sticks out. She prepares to make the hit when she heard his voice and she is relieved to find out Nick made it inside. “You punk, you scared me!” She said with a slight laugh in her voice. “Let's get him inside so I can patch him up.” 

 

…

 

This house is ugly. She found the color design terrible and the lack of decor was astonishing. Nick had found an island countertop and gave her plenty of room to work while he checked the upstairs. As she suspected, he was fine and the stitch went in perfectly. The only thing she had left was to give him a blood Transfusion so she sat there while waiting for blood to fill the bag so she can start the process. He needed blood, and she had some to donate. She couldn't believe the rate the boy had healed, the internal bleeding shouldn't have stopped. She should be looking for blenders, clipping arteries and stitching the blood vessel that erupted but instead, a miracle of some sort happened. He still need blood, and she could give him some of her blood, but it may not be enough. He lost a lot of blood, and even with his body miraculously closing the internal wound without extensive surgery, he still had a 50/50 shot of surviving, even with this transfusion but it gave him a shot of survival..

 

…

 

Nick cleared upstairs for a whole but couldn't get the nerve to go back downstairs. He should of been more supportive of the search, he was too harsh on Ellis, who could possibly be his only friend left on this dying planet and he already lost two friends, he can't afford to lose Ellis. He couldn't handle another loss. He shakes his head and starts to head back downstairs. “How is he doing?” He asked without taking a glance. He knew he wanted to take a look but his mind kept showing the worst of outcomes, so he decided to check the kitchen for a drink. “He is resting, we won't know anymore until he either wakes up or dies. Nothing else I can do. He lost a lot of blood, so prepare for the worst.”she said quickly, keeping her head down while she ate a stale generic brand crackers. “Had to do a blood transfusion but with only me as a viable donor, I couldn't give him enough to increase his chance of survival, but maybe the little blood I was able to give was enough to kickstart his system.” With that, she left the room to find a bedroom to camp in. She was tired and lightheaded, she gave up more blood than she meant but she needed to increase his shots, and she was healthy so it wouldn't kill her, she'll just feel like crap for a few days…

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I been thinking, and I kay bring Coach and Rochelle back in the mix. I would like to know what you guys think. Do you want Coach and Rochelle?
> 
> Also, hospital name is fake obv, didnt like any names of hospitals I found in a quick Google search for hospitals on Atlanta. This story is taking place near Atlanta but not in the city of Atlanta


End file.
